Judi Friedman and Jerry Lankin
We’re two SaddleBrooke foodies forever seeking great places to eat! We’ll review two restaurants each month for taste and presentation, service, price, value, and ambiance. If you have a favorite eatery and would like to spread the word, please send us an email at [email protected].
Bata
35 E. Toole Avenue, 520-367-4718
In this column we endeavor to differentiate restaurants from each other and to rate them not so much in competition, but what they’re really offering as far as food, service, ambiance, etc., is concerned. We have come across a restaurant that, in Tucson, is what we consider to be a most unique and different eatery. Bata, at 7th and Toole in downtown Tucson, is a real dining experience. When you go there, you must believe and take on faith that this is going to be different from any restaurant you have ever enjoyed. It’s in the old Warehouse District and is a vast, high-ceiling, rough-walled, understated, and elegantly created space. Its servers are very knowledgeable and attentive. The great danger here is over-ordering, and you would be well served to be at least a party of four so that you can share many of the different foods and tastes that are going to be presented to you. Its style is very “tapas”-oriented—small portions, intense flavors, and interesting presentations. One of the things that Jerry enjoyed most was that the entire meal does not come to you at one time but in small presentations, constantly brought to the table where the hot food is hot, the cold food is cold, and there’s ample time for conversations and enjoyment of these most interesting foods. Admittedly, much of what is on the menu and its description we did not understand, which made the experience all the more exciting.
We went there for Jerry’s birthday celebration with our best friends Bonnie and Irv who had been there before and who helped guide us through this eclectic menu. We started with several appetizers. First, we ordered roasted beet tartlet, yellow beets in a tartlet with house pickles and a beet miso. We ordered four (one each), which was just perfect. Our second appetizer was a beef tartar, which was really a non-traditional presentation: a mélange of beef, smoked aioli, and chili oil, accompanied by a white Sonoran wheat tortilla. The beef appeared to be cooked, so although it was not what we expected, it was nonetheless a very enjoyable appetizer. The third appetizer was a grilled, fermented potato bread with cultured butter and smoked salt. I would recommend a pass on this, as it was nothing special. The fourth appetizer, which was a real hit and totally unexpected, was a puff pastry, buttered and cooked on a griddle and served with labneh (a cheese yogurt) with a large dollop of apricot jam in the center, along with a cured egg yolk. It was such a hit that we actually ordered a second dose of deliciousness! Remember, I told you not to overorder? We did! The confit swordfish belly, cucumber, grape, dill, mint, parsley, and pan de cristal was superb. Irv had the pickled cucumber and melon, ricotta, tomato, apple, basil, and chili oil, and it was enjoyed by all. The winner was the beef and pork pâté with apple and elderberry mostarda, herb salad, and pan de cristal. Bata helped celebrate Jerry’s birthday by presenting him with a mystery chocolate something dessert (not on the menu), which was incredible. Consider the evening a dinner and show, and had you gone to a hack restaurant and theater afterward, it would have set you back more than this wonderful dining experience, which we highly recommend.
Taste & Presentation *****
Service *****
Price Range $$$$
Value *****
Ambiance *****
Bata is highly recommended.
Mali Thai
12142 N. Rancho Vistoso Blvd., 520-929-6989
malithaiorovalley.com
Since your Cooks shop at Safeway often, we decided to try Mali Thai. This small, very clean restaurant was in the right place at the right time. We were greeted and seated at our table promptly, welcomed by our server (a delightful young woman), and given menus. The menu is organized in such a way as to allow the diner great flexibility to choose their main entrée with the protein they want. We started with fresh spring rolls, which were served quickly. The vegetables were very fresh, and the sauce that was served with the rolls made the dish very tasty. When we ordered our entrées, the server told us that the degree of “hot” in the mild choice (Number 1) had just a little kick. Judi ordered pad thai noodles with chicken, and Jerry ordered the mixed vegetables with beef. His dish was served with jasmine rice. The dishes were served shortly after ordering. We discovered after one bite that their idea of “mild” spice was not our idea! While Jerry is much more used to spicy dishes, it was even hot for him! The jasmine rice really helped. The flavors of both dishes were good, but the protein portions were on the small size. We had leftovers to take home.
Taste & Presentation ***
Service ****
Price Range $$
Value **
Ambiance **